Gifts for athletes

MOSCOW - Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has given a Mercedes-Benz car to each Olympic medallist from the host country of the 2014 Sochi Games.

Medvedev reportedly gave away dozens of white Mercedes-Benz cars, decorated with the Russian Olympic team logo.

While some of Russia's star athletes, like 15-year-old figure skater Julia Lipnitskaia or 17-year-old teammate Adelina Sotnikova, don't even have their licences yet, Medvedev found a way around that problem by providing a driver — all services paid.

After an embarrassing sixth-place finish in the medals table at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, Russia finished at the top in Sochi.

Medvedev says that it was important for the government to continue supporting athletes financially.